JEROME ROBINSON DIVERSITY AWARD
PURPOSE
The intent of this award is to encourage and ultimately increase the representation of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) librarians within the architectural information profession by nurturing curiosity, supporting career development and building relationships with members of the AASL community.
The award is named to honor the memory of Jerome Robinson, a Black scholar who dedicated his life to researching and elevating the profile of Los Angeles Architect Robert Kennard. You can learn about Jerome and his research via text and audio from this episode of the University of Southern California’s Save As podcast.
AWARD
The award supplements travel expenses for in-person attendance of the annual AASL Conference for a BIPOC student or recent graduate in the fields of either librarianship or architecture, with a strong interest in some combination of the two.
The winner will receive a stipend of $750 to defray travel expenses for in-person attendance, complimentary registration for the conference, and a one-year student membership to AASL.
The award recipient will be also given the option to be paired with a fellow conference attendee ('buddy") to support them in navigating through their first conference experience with AASL.
Here's what our first two awardees have said reflecting on their time at the annual conference:
This experience was a pleasurable and stimulating whirlwind...I’m sincerely grateful to the AASL for granting me the opportunity to connect, address, and familiarize myself with the pertinent and pressing topics that pervade the spheres of architectural librarianship.--Rachel Delph, 2024 Awardee
The experiences at the conference exceeded all of my expectations...I had been part of the ListServ, but it was only at the conference that I was able to genuinely connect with so many peers and begin to discuss the common challenges we face and also potential collaborations and new possibilities.--Lynn Kawaratani, 2023 Awardee
ELIGIBILITY AND CONDITIONS
1. Applicants must identify as BIPOC (American Indian/Alaska Native, Indigenous Peoples, Asian, Black/African American, Hispanic/Latinx, Middle Eastern or North African, and/or Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander).
2. Preferred qualifications include recent completion of an accredited degree program in library and information science, architecture, architectural history, or urban planning. Other combinations of experience and education will be considered.
3. Candidates must demonstrate, in writing, a strong interest in the combination of the built environment disciplines and librarianship. Specifically, the application form includes the following question: Please describe your interest in a combination of architecture and librarianship. If your experience falls primarily under architecture, describe your interest in becoming a librarian, archivist or information professional. If your experience falls primarily under librarianship, describe your experience with or interest in architecture as a potential subject specialty. Please structure your response as a brief essay of 400-500 words (do not exceed 500 words).
4. The recipient of the award must confirm by email that they are able to meet the requirement of in-person conference attendance.
5. The award recipient will submit a brief post-conference report for posting on the AASL Website. The report should outline conference activities and experiences and include an account of how the award supported professional development goals.
APPLICATION PROCESS
1. Complete the application form here, https://forms.gle/w9PnmS4BxRRX4KHp7, by Friday, February 9 at 11:59pm Pacific Time.
2. Send a current curriculum vitae to AASL Awards Committee Co-Chairs Gabriella Karl-Johnson (gjk@princeton.edu) and Jesse Vestermark (jvesterm@calpoly.edu).
MORE INFORMATION
Inquiries about the award should be directed to: Gabriella Karl-Johnson (gjk@princeton.edu) and Jesse Vestermark (jvesterm@calpoly.edu).